Ghosn planned to remove Saikawa as Nissan CEO – Report

Auto News - Published on Wed, 12 Dec 2018

Auto News quoted people familiar with the matter as saying that Mr Carlos Ghosn was planning to remove Nissan CEO Mr Hiroto Saikawa before Ghosn was arrested in Japan last month for alleged financial misconduct. Two people with knowledge of the matter said that Mr Ghosn, who was then Nissan's chairman, was planning a wider management shakeup, and part of the blueprint included a new CEO. One source said Mr Ghosn was planning to discuss the reorganization during a November trip to Japan with an eye toward implementing it next spring. The other source said that “He was getting ready for a shakeup that was going to affect Mr Saikawa. It was a path to a different CEO.”

But Mr Ghosn never had a chance to discuss the matter with Nissan’s board. Authorities arrested Mr Ghosn on November 19 after his plane landed in Tokyo. He has been detained in a Tokyo jail ever since as investigators probe allegations that he hid about USD 80 million in compensation from financial filings over eight years. Nissan’s board ousted Mr Ghosn as its chairman three days after his arrest and is scheduled to meet December 17 to appoint a replacement.

Mr Ghosn wanted to overhaul Nissan’s management partly because he was unhappy with Nissan’s financial performance under Mr Saikawa, the people said. Nissan’s operating income fell 17 percent in the first half of the current fiscal year ended September 30, 2018. Mr Ghosn was also critical of Mr Saikawa’s handling of the ongoing final inspection scandal in Japan, which has dented earnings and forced Nissan to recall more than 1 million vehicles in its home market. Despite efforts to root out the problems, Nissan continues to undercover new inspection oversights. Its latest were announced December 7, triggering 150,000 more recalls.